The Legend of Zelda: Spirits of Old
by CannibalPieChan
Summary: Link Virens is your average no-good loser-boy on the street-that is, until he finds a mysterious sword housing the spirit of the person he thought he'd never meet: the Hero of Time. Rated T for violence and swearing.


The morning was sharp and crisp, the taste of light smoke in the air from the fireplaces of various houses. A TV could be heard from an old, half-deaf man who always blared the 7 o'clock news too loud. Light snow dusted the ground, though it would soon melt for it was rather warm that time of year, any snow at all rather odd, but then again Hyrule was known for its oddities. An old beat up black car drove down the street, the driver young and laid back, obviously not caring that it was 7:50, school started in ten minutes, and it was a twenty minute drive to the campus. The 17-year-old didn't really care that much, his first class sucked, anyway, with Mr. Gando, a Gerudo-Hylian hybrid with an ugly hooked nose and a nasty grudge against the man—or child—driving the car. That was precisely why he was taking his time. No body, and I mean no body, wanted Ancient History with Mr. Gando.

The streets that morning weren't icy or slick at all, despite the slight snow, so there was no reason at all for the teenager to go as slow as he did. In fact, most teenagers were known for their reckless driving, this one in particular. He just wasn't looking forward to first period, that's all. Unfortunately for him, so long as the car was moving he was getting closer and closer to that dreaded class with that dreaded man. At least he had his obnoxiously loud friend, Navi Dekunut, to keep him company in that dull class. Not to mention Zelda...

Damn, Zelda was probably the hottest hottie in all of hottiedom. With her beautifully curvy body and long brown hair that fell to her shoulder blades. Not to mention she always wore such amazing clothes—tight fitting shirts and floofy skirts GODESSES he could stare at her all day if her stupid older brother Sheik weren't always right there to punch guys like him in the face.

"Nice of you to join us, Link."

Oh goddesses. Link looked up at Mr. Gando, those red eyes not focused on him but the textbook under his crooked nose. Other than the slightly greenish skin and red eyes, Gando looked like a Hylian—pointy ears and all that. In fact, almost everyone was Hylian now, or part Hylian. About a hundred and fifty years ago, the Hylians went through some huge revolt against their monarchs and formed a democracy, which of course allowed the other races to mingle a little more. There was hardly a pure-blood anything anymore that wasn't Hylian (like Link).

Link hurriedly took his seat, unable to think of an idiotic comeback to Mr. Gando's remark. His bright blue eyes stared down at his desk as he drummed his fingers against the wood-painted plastic. He gave a quick glance to Zelda, was she looking at him? No. She was reading her text book. Zelda was a perfect student, and incredibly amiable to top. She and Link were almost polar opposites. Link was a slacker, no-good, I-don't-give-a-damn kind of guy. It was amazing that Navi was even his friend, and probably wouldn't be if they hadn't grown up together. Speaking of Navi, a little folded piece of paper landed on his desk. He opened.

"You okay?"

Link looked over at Navi. She gave a sheepish smile, her short blue hair tucked neatly behind her pointy, Hylian ears. Navi had a little fairy blood in her, a was considered one of the last fairies. Every Wednesday, all the fairy-blooded people would meet up and try to bring a Great Fairy back, even one would do. But alas it was all for not. The Great Fairies had been destroyed long ago, along with the monarchy. Those that weren't killed fled to the Heavens to live with the Goddesses.

"Fine," Link wrote back, glancing up at Mr. Gando before passing the note to her. She sat there for a moment before busily scribbling something like crazy and passing it back.

"Are you sure? You seem a little out of it. Did Zelda turn you down again? You know, Link, I think I'm goin to ask Tael out today. Maybe. Probably not. His sister scares me, Tatl. I always see them at the Fairy gatherings, and she's always glaring at me. I swear she hates my guts."

"Nah, she hates everyone. It's nothing personal. I once sat next to her in math, and she always had this 'I hate the world' look on her face. And no, Zelda did not turn me dow-"

The note was whisked out of his hands. Link looked up angrily, but his expression fell when he saw it was Mr. Gando.

"Late to class, then passing notes," said that horrid, crooked nosed man. "Tsk, tsk, Link. Do I have to send you out again?"

"Mr. Gando I started it!" Navi said. "Don't blame Link!"

"Then I'll send you out, too."

Navi bit her lip and stared at her desk. Link glared at his teacher. It was then noticed that Zelda was looking at them, a slight smile on her face. But it wasn't a kind smile, it was an amused one. An "Oh my goddesses, he's getting sent out again, what a loser" look. Link sighed as he and Navi were practically kicked out of class. Now Zelda would never go out with him!

"The nerve of that guy!" Navi snapped. "Kicking you out when you did nothing wrong!"

"Yeah, I know right? I can understand him kicking you out, but not me," Link replied.

Navi pouted. "Link... Goddesses do you care about anyone but yourself?"

"Just gotta look out for Numero Uno, Nav. You should have kept your mouth shut. Then again, if you had, you'd get stuck in another lecture about the Hero of Time." He laughed. Gando loved to talk about the Hero of Time, that and it was a major part of the Junior year curriculum. The Hero of Time was the icon of Hyrule, having saved it not once, but tens of times in different lives. Reincarnation was a huge belief in Hyrule, not so much in the neighboring country of Termina (though they did have their own legend about how the Hero of Time saved them from an evil moon).

It was said that a long time ago, thousands of years ago, Hyrule fell into the clutches of an evil Gerudo man, Ganondorf, and the Hero of Time, Link, along with the help of Sheik, who was secretly Princess Zelda in disguise, stopped him. Or something. Link wasn't very good at history. He didn't really care that much. But anyway, because of Link and Zelda of the past, a lot of kids were named Link and Zelda now. There were two Zeldas in Link's math class, and another Link in english.

"So I guess we have to go the office," Navi muttered.

"Are you kidding? Let's get out of here!"

"Link? What? You mean ditch schoo-"

The girl didn't get to finish. Her hand was grabbed and Link was pulling her out of the long hallway to the back of the school. The air was still cool, the snow melting slightly in the rear field as they trudged through muddy grass, hands clasped and breath fogging the air. Link's bright eyes didn't even look back at Navi as he tugged the girl along, and Navi didn't protest. She might as well go along to make sure Link didn't get into any trouble.

It didn't take Navi long to realize that Link had no intention of even staying on campus. He was soon looking along the rear fence for that one loose pole they could squeeze out of. The forest behind Hyrule High School was off-limits to all students, it was said that strange things happened in there, and children often lost their identities. But Link didn't believe in all that. The monsters and magic beings vanished along with the Great Fairies, Hyrule was a free country.

The pair made it off campus, taking a few slow steps into the Lost Woods, as the forest was called. It was filled with large bushes and tall pine trees, the occasional deciduous tree. Link had been through it a few times, Navi had not. The girl clung to his arm, trying to force the lump in her throat down and cease her shivering.

"We shouldn't be here, Link," she said, readjusting her grip so the boy beside her would feel her nervousness. "You know what they say about this place. They say the Skull Kid lives here, you know him, right? He almost destroyed Termina, and stole the Hero of Time's ocarina, and causes all sorts of mischief. Let's go back, I'm sure the school is calling our parents right now." She clung a little tighter. "Link, I have a really bad feeling. Please..."

"C'mon Navi, nothing's going to happen," Link assured her, brushing aside some branches of a coniferous bush. His dirty blonde hair looked almost green in the shadowy light of the forest.

"Link, please, my fairy senses are going nuts."

"You're just paranoid."

"Link..."

"Ugh, alright, Navi," Link snapped, freezing midstep before pulling her back a little. "We'll go back. Happy?"

Navi nodded vigorously, grinning all the more as they turned. But her grin fell when she saw something moving towards them. Something dark. She froze, immediately feeling as though all the blood was leaving her body. She whimpered Link's name. He saw it, too. The two teenagers were frozen, staring at the beast that approached them. It was massive, and soon became apparent that it wasn't one beast but two! A Bulblin riding a Bulbo! And where there was one Bulblin, there was sure to be more! Link took a shaky breath, Navi didn't dare to breathe. All they could see were the two pairs of beady red eyes staring at them almost hungrily. Hadn't the Bulblins died out? Sure Bulbos were still around, mostly for food and entertainment reasons, but the Bulblin... Navi's grip suddenly tightened even more on Link's arm.

"Link," she whispered, "run."

The two took off, not looking where they were going, only desperate to get away from there, from their certain death. Neither cared where the Bulblin came from, or why it was there, they only wanted to get away. There was a grunt, and a growling cry, and then the thundering steps of the Bulbo could be heard behind them. Oh Goddesses, save them!

Navi's foot caught a misplaced tree root, forcing her to the ground. Link only kept running, kept fleeing from battle. She called to him but he didn't look back, not even when he heard her scream, which was probably from being impaled or... or something. He had to take care of himself, get himself out of there! Please, Goddesses, save him! The scenery changed slightly, tall pine trees lessening slightly to reveal stone ruins, and the padding of his feet changed to clicking as it fell on the stone. He could still hear them, the Bulblins. They were looking for him as the desert to poor Navi! He ducked into a building—rather what was left of one. It no longer had a roof, was only a collection of broken stone walls. Oh Goddesses, Navi. He'd just left her like that. Navi, poor Navi. He was a terrible person. How could he leave her? It was true, he had to look out for number one, but what about number two? What would he be without the obnoxious fairy-girl? He took a shaky breath, feeling hot tears sting his eyes. Navi, poor Navi. He'd left her just like that. She'd always been a good friend to him, and he was terrible in return. And now she was dead because of him. A tear ran down his cheek, then another. It didn't matter if he cried where no one could see him. His breath hitched in his throat, followed by a choked sob, but he was quickly silenced when he heard something. A Bulblin? No, it wasn't a vicious yowl... more of a gentle calling. He looked up, but all he was was stone ruins. The trees broke overhead in that direction, letting in a small circle of light. Odd, for this time of day the light shouldn't be coming down at that angle. Link stood, staring at the light. Then his feet moved. He moved towards it, shouldn't he be moving away from it? Something that made light come through trees at odd angles meant magic, and magic meant trouble. Still, he felt drawn to it, drawn to the warm calling of the whateveritwas that was behind those ivy covered stone walls.

He glanced out, hiding behind the wall, expecting to find something strange, maybe a Great Fairy here to take revenge on the Hylians. But instead he found something simple—or so it seemed. A blade was there, planted in a stone slab. The hilt was a blueish purple, leading to a golden stone, from which blue-purple wings spread out. He felt like he'd seen this sword before, the glowing silver blade reminded him of something... Powerful and yet wonderful. Link couldn't help but approach it, and as he did so, the calling became stronger.

_Oh he who approaches me, take me in thy hand and wield me with a strong heart. I will help thee, young child with much courage. Perhaps hidden, but it is there. If thee believes thyself worthy, take me and hold me with pride in thy heart._ The words were almost like a song, gentle and sweet in his head. He stepped closer, handing reaching forward slowly and carefully. Link quickly drew back.

"What am I thinking?" he demanded of himself. It's a sword! A stupid sword! Swords don't talk, and certainly not to me. Especially about courage. What courage do I have? I left my best friend to be eaten..." He felt tears well up again.

_And does thee give up?_

He blinked, looking back at the sword. "Give up?"

_Will thee let thy friend die?_

"What can I do?"

_They come._

"What?"

The yowl, that horrendous yowl filled his ears. There was the clicking of hooves on stone, and then the massive Bulblin appeared, riding its Bulbo, with Navi thrown over the haunches of the creature. It looked at him with beady, stupid eyes. Link could only stare back, horrified. But Navi! Oh, Navi was there! Was she alive? Dead? He stepped back, his elbow touching something hard and surprisingly warm. He looked. The blade's hilt.

Another yowl distracted him, pulling his attention back to the Bulblin as it called more of it's friends; smaller, perhaps its underlings. Navi stirred where, lifting her head weakly until her eyes fell on Link.

"Link! Get out of here!" she gasped, only to be hit with the King Bulblin's mighty fist.

Link didn't think. He grabbed the blade, drawing it from its stone slab. "Navi!" he screamed. The name seemed to resonate within the blade, sending warm pulses through his own body.

_Na...vi..._

It echoed in his mind for a moment. And then his stance changed. The boy who had never held a sword in his life changed his stance, one hand gripping the hilt tightly as he ran at King Bulblin. The underlings screeched and charged him, but his feet seemed to move themselves. Dodging, ducking, jumping, it all came so naturally. The blade would not be dirtied by any other blood but the monster's holding Navi.

_Navi._

Grip shifted to a jabbing strike, a jump and then-

The blade pierced flesh, dragging along the Bulbo's thick hide and forcing a screech from the boar-like creature. King Bulblin gave an angry yowl, but Link gave him a quick elbow jab to the face before kicking him off his ride. He followed, blade poised to kill. Easy kill. King Bulblin did not even try to shield himself, he wore no armor at all. The blade sank into green flesh, eliciting a final yelp from the massive King before it fell silent, red-black liquid seeping from the wound. The other Bulblin's fled, not wishing for the same end as their leader.

Navi could only stare. Link had never held a blade in his life, how had he known how to use it? And where did he learn those... moves? Sure, he was a dabbler when it came to sports, but wasn't a gymnist or anything. She slid off the Bulbo as it collapsed, blood dripping down its side where the sword had pierced its hide.

"Link?" Navi called quietly. The boy looked at her, eyes brighter than usual.

"Navi?" He approached her, reaching out and touching her cheek with a perfectly clean hand. Navi couldn't help but notice that the sword had already been wiped clean. She redirected her attention to Link, whose hand was sliding from her face down her neck to her shoulder, then pulled back. Her face flushed slightly, and she would have yelled at him had it not been for the uncharacteristically puzzled and kind eyes that were gazing at her.

"Yeah, it's me, Link," she said. "Don't you remember? Mr. Gando kicked us out so we came out here and..." Her voice trailed off. Why was he so confused? "Link are you okay?"

Those bright eyes stared into hers, blinking a few times before stepping back. "Your name is Navi?" he asked. Navi confirmed it. "How strange... I thought... You were someone else..."

"Someone else? Link, you knew it was me! You called my name, you rescued me! What's wrong with you, Link? And that sword, what is it?" Navi couldn't help but feel hurt at his words. Who did he think she was? Zelda? What a loser.

Link stared at her as she yelled at him, unable to speak until she brought up the sword. He looked at it, wielded it around a little. "Oh this? This is the Master Sword," he said, as if it was obvious. Navi gasped.

"The Master Sword? Link! You can't take that! How'd you even take it? I thought it was lost, along with the temple of time, a long time ago!" Navi snapped. "Link, this can't be, you've never even held a sword before!"

"I've held a sword plenty of times! I've held _this_ sword plenty of times!" Link retaliated. Navi looked shocked.

"When?"

"At the Temple of Time, seven years from when I last remembered. I slayed Ganon with it. Three times, maybe more"

"Link you're spouting nonsense!"

"I'm not spouting nonsense! You were there the first time! No—Navi was there the first time, not you." He looked away, unable to speak anymore. Navi could only stare.

"Link you never paid attention in history, how do you know this?"

"History? Yes, I suppose it is history... These slaying... happened hundreds of years apart, didn't they."

"You're... You're not Link... Are you?" Navi asked, taking a step closer.

"I am called Link," he replied. Navi reached out and touched him.

"Your eyes are so bright, brighter than _my_ Link's."

"I... I am not _your_ Link," he said, looking down at the blade. "I wonder how long it's been, how long have I slept within this blade? None of them needed me before, so I simply sat back a watched. I had to... place my conscience in this blade all those years ago, when I moved freely between times. My body is long gone, but my spirit is still here, trapped." A pause. "Pray tell, how long has it been?"

Navi stared. The question seemed to be directed at her, who else could this Link be asking? How could she answer, and the way he talked... Moved freely through time? Could he mean...? Navi parted her lips.

"Are you..." Link looked at her. "Are you the Hero of Time?"

There was a pause, then a smile, accompanied by a warm look in those kind, selfless eyes.

"I am Link, the Hero of Time."

* * *

A/N: Alright, that's the first chapter. I decided to go with a selfish, loser protagonist so there's more room for character development with Link. Also, Link is always seen as a goody-two-shoes, so I made him a buttface.


End file.
